Welcome to the Building
by bluestockingkat
Summary: Renee sees herself in Phil's new Day in the Life video. Has she really been in the same Starbucks as them 'people watching' and not noticed them? And the interruption in Dan's video seems just too familiar. Is it a coincidence or her mind playing tricks?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the people or places I mentioned. This wasn't written for a profit, just merely fun.

Renee hit play on her phone. The beat of Fall Out Boy's newest hit song started to fill the room and in return, her head slowly started nodding up and down with the rhythm. She tidied the few things she managed to have already brought to her new flat but because it was new and mostly empty, it left a lot of room to dance too. Without caring, she turned up the volume to get in the full cleaning and dancing routine she did. After listening for an hour, Renee lowered the volume significantly and changed it to softer, writing type of music. She opened her white laptop and began clicking away on the keys, adding a few sentences slowly to the Word Document.

Renee was writing. She was stuck in life and maybe this would turn into a novel if she wrote a little each day, she thought but recently was in a creativity block. After a slow two playlists and hours later, she decided to save and turn off the screen. Rubbing her eyes and noticing it was only early evening, Renee grabbed her black jacket and decided on a walk. It was probably time to eat anyway and she never was much of a cook.

After sitting at a small cushy chair at the local Starbucks, Renee sipped coffee and watched people. It used to give her inspiration, and she was bored. She already ate at a sandwich shop for dinner, eating alone there as usual. She didn't have any friends in London where she newly moved to and had trouble staying in contact with her old friends at university. They weren't exactly close friends anyway. More of the types that you hung around with because it was convenient.

Meanwhile, at a few tables away sat Dan and Phil drinking their own versions of the sugary coffee. They first looked around and noticed that nobody paid them any attention before taking out a sleek camera which they began to talk to. After a few minutes of that and people around them slowly casting judging looks, Phil put it away. They both retreated to their phones, occasionally making conversation or a snarky comment. Dan looked around every so often while looking through Twitter and Phil played Crossy Road.

Renee grew irritated of the new customers looking for seats and looking pointedly at her, sprawled out at a two person table. She huffed, finished her now cold drink, and left. On her way back, she had gotten turned around because she stopped at a little music store she hadn't noticed before. Eventually she made it back before dark without getting a cab drivers help. She went through her routine of checking all the usual websites, happy that the wifi finally connected. Out of sporadic boredom, she watched a few youtuber's old videos. One of those being Danisnotonfire who, unbeknownst to her, was just returning with Phil and finishing off their Day in the Life video.

A few days later, Renee was on twitter when she saw that AmazingPhil uploaded a new video. While watching it, she saw that they had been to the same Starbucks she went to. And hey, she also saw that funny looking man with the grey fur coat with spots. Hardly paying attention to Phil going on about Crossy Road, she froze. Did she really just see that? Dragging it back a few seconds, she paused. Yes! That was her!

Shaking her head to seeing if in fact, that was her in Phil's video wearing a black jacket and purple scarf. It was. It had to be. She looked around her barely empty flat in shock then cursed herself. How had she been at Starbucks, people watching specifically, and not seen them? Renee cursed herself for being stupid and not observant enough, not realizing they had sat behind her in a corner. She got over it in a few minutes, thinking that if she had seen them, she'd probably do nothing anyway. She also remembered they were also just normal people with really cool jobs.

After searching in vain in her empty fridge, she reminded herself mentally she needed to actually buy food in case it rained one day and she didn't want to venture out for food. Also on her to do list she added to finish bringing over the last boxes of things she wanted to move over for now. When she got a job, she'd find more things to decorate with but for now she had the bare essentials.

She sat back down at her laptop, munching on some cereal, when she noticed Dan also uploaded a video. She happily clicked on it and waited out the ad. It was a funny video filled with a thoughtful ending as his videos always were. She noticed there must be a long blooper.

It was his intro. He got as far as "Hello Internet" when music started playing and interrupted his next sentence. He paused, surprised and listened. It was obvious it wasn't Phil. It was distorted ever so slightly but still loud. Blaringly loud.

It was Fall Out Boy's new song.

Then a look of understanding washed over Dan and he said, "Oh, it must be the new person who moved in above us. I would usually complain about such noise but they have a good sense of music," he nodded approvingly. Then it ended with him starting his intro again after an hour he said the great music had stopped, being cut off by a siren outside, and saying "For fuck sakes," before it abruptly ended.

But Renee was sitting there, dawning on something. The song had been Fall Out Boy's new song. She had been listening to that, quite loudly she admitted, a few days ago. Suspicion crowded her. Maybe. Noo, she had just moved in, really recently. It couldn't be. But the timing could be right, she noticed. Then she shot herself down again, thinking that she hadn't seen anybody at all at her new building. Not in the hallways. Not even in the lift.

Renee went to sleep that night, thinking that there was no way she was the person who had interrupted his video. There was no way she was the person who lived above them. The timing simply was slightly off. She was almost asleep when her eyes snapped open in a small realization; Dan and Phil had been to the same local Starbucks as her. On the same day.

A week later Renee was in the lift, holding the last box she was going to take up to her flat. The doors dinged open and she stepped out. It obscured her vision as it was a large box but not too heavy, so she stared at her feet through the corner of her eyes as she made her way clumsily down the hallway. She was paying slight attention to where she was going but apparently the person coming down the hallway from the other side was not and bumped into her.

The box tipped over and DVDs spilled out all over the floor, ruining the perfect and tight order they had been stacked in. It knocked her off balance for a second before she regained her footing. Already the person was crouching down, snatching up their phone and shoving it in their pocket and beginning to gather the DVDs nearest him.

"I am so sorry. God I'm such a twat, not looking where I was going," he said, his brown hair covering his face. Renee had failed to notice his familiar tone.

"It's alright. It was bound to happen to me with at least one of the boxes," She said. He smiled in return, probably not understanding what she meant. They began to place the DVDs back in the box when he slowed and started to flip through the stack he was holding, looking at them.

"Hey, if these are yours, which I'm sure they are-sorry that was a stupid assumption- well, you have great films. I actually own most of these except a few. Surprising, isn't it?" he said, looking up at her. Then Renee paused. She was looking at him too, into his brown eyes. His Dan Howell brown eyes.

"Really?" She managed to say after a second. He nodded at her answer and more approvingly at the last few DVDs he put in the box. She went to pick it up but he scooped it up quicker than her.

"Oh, no you don't have to do that, thank you though," Renee said, guessing his intention.

"No really, I'm the one who ran straight into you and made the mess," Dan said. She paused then nodded. She couldn't help it, why would she pass up more time with him purposely?

She walked down the hall with him beside her and stopped in front of a door.

"Uh-," He started to say before she looked at it and said, "Shit! This isn't even my floor."

"Yeah because this is my flat," Dan said in amusement. Then he looked at her with his eyebrows moving inward while her eyebrows shot up also.

"Wait, are you the person who lives above us?" Dan asked in surprise. Renee stared at him, slowly putting the facts together.

"I must be," She said faintly, confused at his reaction and secretly pleased about the new information.

He began walking to the elevator with her DVD box still in his hands.

"Well, welcome to the building!"

Author's Note: Just a quick oneshot I had thought about. I don't usually do this so leave me a review and tell me what you think :) Inspiration from Fall Out Boy's new song Uma Thurman which I would recommend as I ended up dancing to it just like Renee was in this!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the people or places I mentioned. This wasn't written for a profit, just merely fun.

Author's Note: So I have decided to continue this for now, thanks to The-Sun's-Gone-Wibbly's lovely review. I find it hard sometimes to write about actual people over characters but I have a few ideas to add. There will be another chapter after this sometime this weekend probably.

Dan and Renee stood next to each other in the short lift ride up a floor. Dan was secretly pleased as well. She wasn't exactly their neighbor, but he was surprised at her music and film choices, all of them being remarkably close to his, which was rare. Plus, he was a nice Winnie the Poo type of fellow that bumped into people way too often but didn't knock them down which he felt bad about.

Renee led the way down the hall identical to the floor below it and the rest of the building to the door she had before, just a floor up. She unlocked it and took the box from Dan who proceeded to stand awkwardly in the hallway, lingering. Renee happily invited him inside.

The flat was full of all her things by now but still seemed empty because it was new and bare. A few colorful decorations lined shelves but not many. She deposited the box on the floor near her TV and sighed.

"I don't have any place to put them so I guess they'll stay in the box for now," Renee laughed at the torn up makeshift box.

"We used to keep ours in a suitcase," Dan said, standing in the middle of the room.

"We?" Renee asked, though she already knew who he was talking about. And he told her what she already knew about his best friend and flat mate Phil.

"A flat mate might be nice but I'm new here to London and don't know, well, anyone," Renee said, making light of her inner loneliness. Dan nodded.

"Do you like it so far?"

"Oh yes. It's different but in an exciting way. And thanks again for your help but well, don't let me keep you. You were on your way out before we uh, bumped into each other," Renee mentioned, not wanting him to leave but seeing that the conversation wasn't going to go any further without it being extremely awkward, standing in the middle of her empty flat.

"Oh, yeah I was. I wasn't going any place in particular, just out for a bite to eat. Actually, since you don't know anyone, you could come with me if you aren't busy. Seeing as we could be meeting again in the building soon," Dan said but paused. "But if that's weird because we just met, then don't feel pressured. Maybe I shouldn't have asked…"

"No, no I'd like to go," Renee quickly replied. "I was going to go out later anyway and it will definitely be a nice change of not eating alone. Let me grab a coat and we can go." She dashed to the side to grab her black coat and purple scarf, insides jumping up and down, not solely because of the situation but mostly because a guy, whom incidentally she already liked, wanted to do something with her.

It wasn't a date, she reminded herself. Just somewhat neighbors getting to know each other. Either way, she was happy.

"Ready," Renee said. They left the building and walked to a nearby restaurant that Dan recommended they go to. It was nice and a place Renee hadn't seen before, despite its closeness to where she lived now. They made casual comments about things they saw while walking but it wasn't weird. Renee hoped she just seemed friendly and was careful not to let anything slip about his internet life. She was going to tell him, really, just during or after dinner perhaps.

She ordered a sandwich from a sleek minimalistic menu and sipped her drink. Dan did the same, but dug out his phone out of his tight pant pocket after giving her a look, apologizing.

"Oh, it's just Phil wandering where I am," Dan replied, after joking that it could be serious. He looked at it for a moment as if deciding, then said. "Um, do you mind if I invite him? He's just around the corner and had texted me to see if I wanted takeout." Dan seemed unsure about it, if it was invading or not but Renee nodded.

"Yes! That'd be great to meet someone new too. I don't mind Dan, really I don't," Renee reassured him with a smile. He hesitated before texting Phil then a few moments later a black haired man slipped into the seat next to Dan.

"Oh hey Phil! This is Renee," Dan said as Phil looked at Renee and back to Dan. Phil and Renee both greeted each other, but Phil had a slight look of confusion on his face that he at least tried to hide. Obviously Dan didn't do this often, invite Phil to have dinner with him and a random girl.

"She's the Fall Out Boy neighbor," Dan explained through the side of his mouth but Renee heard him and quirked her eyebrows upward.

"What?" She asked, laughing a little at the nickname.

"I heard you playing music about a week ago in my room. The first song was Fall Out Boy so it kind of stuck," Dan said.

"Oh no. Did it bother you? Actually it must have, it was really loud and I wasn't even thinking about anyone else nearby. I'm so sorry!" Renee immediately said but Phil chuckled.

"No, it's okay! I liked listening to it. I have the same music taste. Like, exactly the same, that's why it was unique. You didn't interrupt anything," Dan said. Renee relaxed but also knew it was partially a lie.

"Oh good. It won't happen again," she said. Then the food came out and they ate. The rest of the time consisted of making jokes and of course talking about the new Fall Out Boy CD and also a new film they liked, Big Hero 6.

Renee noticed Phil kept looking at Dan and back to her. He was quieter than she expected but a faint inkling told her that he was mostly being quiet for Dan's benefit as he was chatty himself. Renee didn't mind of course. She did think that Dan would have some explaining to do to Phil that she wouldn't mind hearing herself. The three of them had a good time, and she didn't feel alone like usual.

They walked back to the building in the dark and Renee was happy she was walking with two guys that knew the way very well. It was still scary at night in a big city. Phil departed from them, saying he wanted to take the stairs in effort to be healthy. Then Renee had an idea, to rid of the confession bubbling inside of her.

She looked at Dan more closely, clearly not visibly listening to what he was saying though she really was. He trailed off with what he was saying as they stood in a hallway that led to the lift.

"What?" Dan asked in apprehension. Renee's heart thudded. This was it.

"Well, I don't mean to be off putting, but it's just I think I've seen you before. I just realized…Are you popular on the internet by chance?" Renee asked, feigning slight ignorance. She knew it was wrong but desperately wanted a friend and they had become friends quickly, she'd thought.

Dan's tone became cautious. "A video, maybe?" It felt like Renee's soul dropped. Maybe this wouldn't turn out well…

"Yes. Actually yeah, that's it. Is that weird?" Renee asked, hopeful.

"No… Yes, I am popular on the internet. I don't care if you watch my videos if you can find them. I hope you don't think that's weird or different?" Dan replied, shoving his hair back with his hand.

"No, it's pretty cool actually," she said and started walking to the lift, feeling not as nervous.

"I was talking about Big Hero 6 earlier because I'm in it!" he said excitedly, obviously happy.

"Really?" Renee asked, equally as enthused.

"I'm not a movie star though! I have two lines but it's still so incredible. Have you seen it?" Dan asked.

"No, I haven't but want to," Renee said as the lift moved up. It stopped on Dan's floor. He held the door open as he stood half in and half out.

"We should go sometime. I'm always in the mood for going to the cinema and I can point out my part. Phil's in it too," Dan said as the lift buzzed at the open door. "Are you busy tomorrow? I'm busy the next day."

"No, tomorrow is good," Renee said, only beginning to realize what was formulating.

"Great. I'll, uh, oh I'll come up around lunch time to talk about it more then."

Renee nodded, "Yeah, that's good!"

They said their goodbyes and departed. Renee collapsed onto her couch pushed up against a bare wall, excited about the turn of events that happened.


	3. Chapter 3

At 1pm the next day, there was a knock at her door. Renee, who had no idea what time afternoon was to Dan, had been lounging around since breakfast four hours earlier. She jumped up and strode in a few steps across the floor to the door. Dan smiled in greeting and came in.

The truth was, Dan had stayed up late into the night thinking about the new information Renee had bombed him with. She already knew him, perhaps more than she was letting on. But she wasn't a crazy fangirl. Renee didn't want a picture and had treated him normally, even teasing him lightly about his studded shoes. He thought that it would be okay to become friends because he did in fact like her. She was refreshing in his same dreary routine life, something he clearly did not want when studying to become a lawyer.

Renee got him a drink from the small kitchen and they sat on the couch at opposite ends.

"So, who are you in the movie?" Renee asked conversationally.

"You'll have to see," Dan quipped. It was a small part really, still a big deal to him, but the movie idea was just an excuse to see her again. It was a last minute, admittedly, brilliant plan. Phil was still his best friend. Always would be his best friend. But they saw each other every day and meeting someone new, who wasn't a youtuber or worked at the radio, was nice.

They went to the movie. Dan bought popcorn and Renee pulled out Malteasers from her purse once they were sitting down in the dark theater, waiting. The movie was good, she thought. Dan had pointed out his part before it came on and was grinning the entire time it played. A matching smile was on Renee's face too at him being so happy.

They walked home, fingertips lightly brushing from time to time but Renee didn't know whether it was an accidental touch or not. He walked her to her flat door, even though it was one floor out of his way back to his own flat. They chatted a bit more before parting ways.

Renee was buzzing. She hadn't felt happy in a while. Real friend like human interaction had been absent from her life for a while as she delved into her laptop and story world, yet she couldn't help but wonder if this was friendly or more? It was definitely friendly. They had just met after all.

Renee was fuming. Yesterday had been so good. What had happened? Angry, hot tears ran down her cheeks. It was because of a phone call. She knew she should not have called but hoped it would be okay. Apparently not. In a fit of rage, she threw her cell phone at the couch and sunk to the floor, knocking over a glass of water in the process. Water seeped from the broken cup but she didn't pick it up. Didn't move for an hour, emotions and thoughts overwhelming her. After a bit, she stood up and went to get her phone that thankfully wasn't broken from her carelessness.

Hooking it up to her speaker, she blared music. Loudly. She was escaping into the words of the music. She forgotten momentarily she had neighbors and thin flat walls. Or perhaps she didn't care. As long as the music drowned out her thoughts and she followed the lyrics with her mind, everything was going to be okay.

Meanwhile, Dan was bored. He was in the computer room, slowly editing a video. He'd been there for a while and one part just wasn't working out. Frustrated that he might have to film again, he got up and stormed out, down the hallway and into the kitchen where Phil was.

After briefly explaining his problem and coming up with no solution, they both stood in comfortable silence, milling around the kitchen aimlessly. They were, that is, until they heard it. The music, louder than normal. And Dan knew instantly it was hers. It was in the correct direction. Her music taste coming from her flat above.

He looked at Phil in slight confusion. No, she had clearly promised not to disturb them again. What if she had forgotten? No. Well, what if something good happened and she was celebrating? Doubtful based on the genre of music that was drifting through the floor. Then he started to worry. Only a bit, as far as Phil could tell.

"Maybe you should go and see what's going on?" Phil suggested. Dan nodded, frozen in place, wild thoughts gripping him. He broke out of his little trance as the song changed. And it was a song he and Phil recognized, both listened to it in the past when they were feeling particularly down. Very down.

"Come with me," Dan said suddenly but with a weak voice. What if she was crying? He wasn't good at that. Or wanted to be left alone. Why were girls so terrifying in general? Phil nodded, sensing Dan's hurry, and led the way to the lift, Dan following blindly behind him.

They stood outside her door and knocked. No answer. Phil said the music might be too loud to hear from the inside even though it wasn't as disrupting in the hall. So, Dan tentatively opened the door and pushed it open with his fingertips. He peeked his head in and saw her. Sitting in the middle of the floor, staring at her speaker but not seeing it. Seeing a memory from far ago, he knew.

Dan walked in slowly, unsure of what to do, and crouched next to her as Phil shut off the music. It added to the negativity of the atmosphere. The silence. The absence of sound created a void where your breathe was momentarily sucked out of you. That seemed to break her out of her mind and Renee blinked at Dan.

"I don't want to talk about it," She stated clearly to Dan and Phil. Dan nodded in understanding and took her hand as a gesture of comfort. Her hands were sweaty or fresh with tears that were long gone from her shiny eyes.

Phil stood over by her phone, scrolling. Neither noticed until an upbeat song came on. Phil smiled and walked over to the two on the floor and held out his hands, wanting them to stand up. So they did, Renee begrudgingly. The tune took over and Phil grabbed Dan and Renee's hand, forming a three person circle. Then he started to swing their arms in a dancing motion. In a soft wild, silly motion. Dan smiled. He was trying to cheer her up. Trying to ease Dan's tension.

Taking Phil's cue, Dan also started to slowly sway with the happy song with his entire body. Renee smiled at the two of them and looked down, letting them guide her to dancing. How could two people be so nice? Phil was practically a stranger to her yet his good nature was taking over.

They danced longer and Dan broke apart to do a little solo dance that Renee chuckled at. Phil twirled her around and she twirled him around in return, standing on her tip toes as he was so tall. Dan grabbed their hands again and the circle began and they spun around together as the song changed.

Renee thought, while mindlessly spinning around in a circle, holding onto the two boy's hands that she now knew were her first friends of London, that everything might finally be okay.


End file.
